Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre (MHMC) and Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre in Toronto announced an historic agreement to have their testimonies integrated in the Visual History Archive as part of the Institute’s Preserving the Legacy initiative.

The research of these panelists sheds light on various challenges in mediating oral histories. Is it possible to mediate oral histories in an archive and respect the authenticity and nuance of individual narratives that fall into a larger narrative, for instance in an archive? Questions of translation, distortion, and interview methodology are explored to varying degrees by the work of these presenters. Is it possible to convey specific emotions across cultures, language, and identity?Chair: Karen JungblutPeg LeVine, Ph.D., Ed.D.Mark Zaurov, Ph.D.

On March 8, 2015 there will be events all over the world celebrating the achievements of women for International Women’s Day. This year’s theme Make it Happen encourages action for advancing women’s rights and also recognizing the incredible and courageous work women do in various industries throughout the world.

In February, I participated in an international conference titled Are we losing memory? Forgotten sites of Nazi forced labor in Central Europe. The event organized by the Terezin Initiative Institute and the North Bohemian Museum in Liberec brought together educators, researchers, archeologists and other experts from the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany to examine the disconnect between history of forced labor and regional history caused by the ethnic cleansing and population transfers after WWII in regions that were part of the German Reich.  

Montreal, March 23, 2015 – As the world marks the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and the liberation of the Jews of Europe, the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre (MHMC) and Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre in Toronto are proud to announce an historic agreement with USC Shoah Foundation - The Institute for Visual History and Education to have their testimonies integrated in the Visual History Archive as part of the Institute’s Preserving the Legacy initiative.

Once events are recorded in media it becomes a challenge to control or anticipate how that media will be used. Some voices become dominant while others fade out of memory. How is a contextualized narrative produced or reconciled? How do academics make sense of media that was created with differing methodologies or research practices? The research of this panel focuses on cases that elucidate these challenges. Chair: Geoffrey Robinson, Ph.D.Stef Scagliola, Ph.D.Amy Rothschild, J.D.Viola Lasmana

The Holocaust collection in USC Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive contains nearly 53,000 testimonies; however, only a mere six of those testimonies are from survivors who were persecuted by the Nazis for being gay: one in English, three in German, one in French, and one in Dutch. There are other gay survivors we have in the Archive, but they were persecuted by the Nazis for the greater sin of being Jewish; Gad Beck being one of them. The meager number says a lot about the history of the gay men who lived through the Nazi regime and who came out the other end willing and unafraid to speak about their lives.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the first integration of Armenian Genocide testimonies into the Visual History Archive, USC Shoah Foundation will release one clip from the Armenian Genocide collection on the Institute’s website each day for the next 30 days.

With the arrival of new testimonies and indexers, USC Shoah Foundation is advancing to the next stage of its Preserving the Legacy initiative.

Tento sestřih z filmových vzpomínek pamětníků původně vznikl jako součást programu 5. výroční konference Centra vizuální historie Malach při Univerzitě Karlově v Praze. Širšímu publiku představují veselé, odbojné a protinacistické kabaretní písničky z terezínského ghetta a jidiš písně tradičních židů. Sestřih tak zachycuje část mozaiky kultur a identit, o kterou naši společnost připravila genocida osob označených za Židy za druhé světové války.

Tento sestřih z filmových vzpomínek pamětníků původně vznikl jako součást programu 5. výroční konference Centra vizuální historie Malach při Univerzitě Karlově v Praze. Úryvky z rozhovorů vybrané Jakubem Mlynářem, koordinátorem CVHM, a sestříhané Martinem Šmokem, konzultantem USC SF, ukazují nejen rozsah a hloubku Archivu vizuální historie, ale jsou také kulturním a emocionálním zážitkem. Zachycují roli, jakou v našich životech a vzpomínkách hrají písně a nápěvy.

A Lecture with Dr. Wendy Lower, Claremont McKenna College, USC Shoah Foundation 2015 Yom Hashoah Scholar in Residence

Los Angeles, March 26, 2015 –  Echoes and Reflections, a comprehensive Holocaust education program that provides professional development and an array of resources for middle and high school teachers, is marking its 10th anniversary in 2015 with a strong trail of success behind it and ambitious goals for the future.

To commemorate International Women’s Day, March 8, 2015, listen to the testimonies of 10 amazing women from the Visual History Archive who all “made it happen,” from standing up to injustice to saving lives during the Holocaust to preserving the memories of genocide victims and many other courageous acts.

Bella Fox recalls the terrifying experience of arriving to Auschwitz-II Birkenau from the Sighet ghetto in Romania. Bella’s testimony was collected by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and will be integrated into the Visual History Archive part of the Preserving the Legacy Initiative.

Specific places in genocide histories occupy different psychological spaces for survivors, witnesses, and visitors. When a place is preserved, or restored for the purpose of memorialization it is inherently transformed. This panel explores various aspects of this transformation: preparation, planning, execution, and consequences. The themes of memory, identity, and narrative are investigated in the creation of exhibitions and museum spaces that are also touristic landmarks.Chair: Marianne Hirsch, Ph.D.Edyta Gawron, Ph.D.András Lénart, Ph.D.

Raphael Zimetbaum speaks of his gratitude toward the Armenian people in Marseille, France. Along with his parents, he fled from Antwerp, Belgium, to Marseille, France, following the German invasion of Belgium in 1940. In Marseille, his family found housing within the Armenian community neighborhood, where they felt so welcome and were received with great affection. He states that he thinks that the sensitivity extended to his family may have been in part due to the history of the Armenian Genocide and the suffering the Armenian people endured at the time. 

Due to the ongoing political and military conflicts in their country, many students in Ukraine have something in common with Holocaust survivors: They have all experienced the fear and uncertainty of war.

Two months after her Auschwitz: The Past is Present trip to Poland, Karen Wells is more committed than ever to sharing what she learned and making sure the stories of survivors are not forgotten.

USC Shoah Foundation has published a new online exhibit and two new IWitness activities that expand the Institute’s educational offerings in terms of language and subject matter.

Three students from Budapest wrote short stories and poems inspired by testimony that they hope will teach others the importance of acceptance and remembrance.

Jeannie Woods was the only person from her school in Fort Payne, Al., to travel to Poland for "Auschwitz: The Past is Present," but she made sure she wasn't the only one to experience it.

Free and open to the public, monthly Institute visits give guests a chance to explore the life stories of survivors and witnesses of the Holocaust and other genocides and to discover how their memories are being used to overcome prejudice, intolerance and bigotry. The public visit for May is full. The next scheduled visit will be available soon. Description:

USC Shoah Foundation CTO Sam Gustman is the keynote speaker at Tuesday’s Metadata Madness conference in Los Angeles, which will convene data experts from across the entertainment and technology industries to discuss the latest developments in metadata and distribution.

The webinar will provide instructions and helpful tips for implementing the assignment and submitting students' entries to the contest.

Teachers in Hungary are once again invited to learn how to construct their own testimony-based classroom activities.

Most students are probably familiar with the iconic image of an immigrant sailing into New York Harbor under the welcoming arms of the Statue of Liberty. The activity "New Beginnings – Journey to America" introduces students to real people who did just that.

Comcast subscribers will be able to watch USC Shoah Foundation testimonies and films exploring the theme of music on Comcast’s second annual Days of Remembrance: PastFORWARD broadcast.

On Tuesday, March 10, 2015, the USC Center for Advanced Genocide Research hosted a lecture from Dr. Peter Hayes who spoke before a packed room at USC on the complex relationship between anti-Semitism and homophobia exerted in Nazi-occupied territories during World War II. The Theodore Zev Weiss Holocaust Educational Foundation Professor at Northwestern University specializes in 20th-century German History, writing extensively on German industry under the Nazis. Monday's lecture, however, focused on the evolution of his views on a comparison that he was previously reluctant to address.

These resources make it possible for anyone to embark on the IWalks and hear the stories of survivors in the authentic locations where they experienced the Holocaust.